Antique Bakery

Based on Yoshinaga Fumi's manga, Anitque Bakery tells the story of Keiichiro Tachibana, who quits his office job to open a bakery with the intention of catering to and attracting women, but also with the underlying motive of wanting to put an end to nightmares from an incident in his youth when he was kidnapped and fed nothing but cakes. Joining him in the enterprise are childhood friend turned top pâtissier Ono (known as the “Demon of Gay Charm”); scrappy former boxer and now apprentice baker Eiji, whose sweet tooth is exceeded only by his devotion to his new job; and Chikage, Tachibana's manservant of sorts, who bumbles through his wait-staff job. Humorous interactions between the quartet are at the center of this unabashedly beautiful series featuring soft palette set designs, uniformly handsome characters, and lovely assorted confections. Compiling all 12 episodes from 2008 in a three-disc set, in Japanese with English subtitles, suitable for 16-up, DVD extras include interviews, live promo event footage, and a booklet. Recommended. (L. Martincik)